Species of the Month - September 2018

Each month we feature a picture of a species to be found on The Commons. Wherever possible, all species featured have been photographed here. This month, rather than focussing
on a single species, we are featuring some of the butterflies that can often be
found here at this time of year.

The most visible ones are likely
to be the Whites: Large, Small and Green-Veined. Large numbers of them arrived
in the country during the hot summer weather, probably having flown across the
North Sea. Also still in evidence should be Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, and
although it is towards the end of its flying period, Gatekeeper.

Other species likely to be around
are Comma; Peacock; Small Tortoiseshell
(top
picture)
and Red Admiral. We have occasionally been favoured by visits of
Small Copper
(bottom picture) and
Painted Lady: the latter is another butterfly that can sometimes arrive from
across the sea in large numbers. Although not technically a butterfly, the
Six-Spot Burnet moth flies very actively during the day, and can often be seen
in the grassy section of The Common between the bridge over Fox’s Beck and
Warren Road.

This area is the best part of
Southrepps Commons for spotting butterflies, but many can also be seen from any
part of the boardwalk. Not surprisingly, the wooded areas are particularly
likely to harbour many Speckled Wood specimens.

Our website has pictures of all
the species mentioned above, and more that occur earlier in the year.